Columbus does not require licensing for cats, but Ohio law and Franklin County health rules require rabies vaccination for owned cats, and CCC §2327 bars allowing any animal to run at large or cause nuisance on neighbors' property.
Cats are not licensed by Franklin County the way dogs are, but Columbus follows Ohio Department of Health and Franklin County Public Health rabies rules requiring vaccination of cats kept as pets. Owners must keep cats from causing nuisance, defecating on neighbor property, or being abandoned outdoors; CCC §2327 cruelty and confinement provisions apply. Free-roaming cats picked up by CMACC are scanned for microchips and held for stray-hold periods before adoption or transfer to rescue partners. TNR colonies operate under Columbus Community Cats program guidelines.
Failing to vaccinate against rabies, abandoning cats outdoors, or letting cats repeatedly damage neighbor property can lead to citations, impoundment fees, and quarantine orders if a bite occurs.
Columbus, OH
Columbus does not mandate spay or neuter for owned dogs and cats; instead, the city encourages it through low-cost CMACC adoption surgeries, Capital Area Hum...
Columbus, OH
Columbus does not require all owned pets to be microchipped, but every dog and cat adopted through Columbus Animal Care & Control or Capital Area Humane Soci...
See how Columbus's cat rules rules stack up against other locations.
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